The Daily Bell on the Afghan mineral discovery:

Here is what the Anglo-American brain-trust may have in mind:

1. It will invite countries into the region to “exploit” minerals, operating through the Afghan government. (And has already invited China.) Each country, once involved, will be expected to provide its own security.

2. It will doubtless try involve the top-tier of Afghanistan warlords, etc. in the mineral bonanza – with a quid pro quo that the warlords stop fighting the US/Allied Afghan presence. It may even try to involve elements of the Taliban in the effort.

3. The US may well attempt to organize Afghan society around mining so as to reduce additional reliance on the poppy crop – thus rendering the tribal population more docile and regimented (mining being a very regimented activity).

4. The discovery and exploitation of the mineral wealth gives the US and allies ample justification to create a full tier of security measures in and around the mining discovery. It allows the allies to present the continued, open-ended occupation of Afghanistan as a moral imperative. It also allows for the open-ended reconfiguration of society based on mining.

Thus, we can see (hypothetically anyway) is that allied forces are contemplating an entire restructuring of the Afghan society around mineral wealth.They may hope to leverage the discoveries to capture additional world support, resources and security forces.

While we find the announcement thus “desperate and transparent,” we are not prepared to say it will end in failure.”